Does Your Immigration Status Affect Your Alabama Divorce?

Immigrating to the United States and settling here with your family is a long process. You always feel vulnerable until all the members of your family travel to your country of origin on U.S. passports and return safely to your home in the U.S. If your visa status is employment-based, then you constantly worry that things will go wrong with your work; a disagreement with your coworkers or your coworkers could jeopardize your visa status and that of your spouse. Of course, problems at work are not the only things that can disrupt the life that you are working so hard to build for your family here. The family courts of Alabama have jurisdiction to rule on divorce and parenting plan cases involving non-citizens of the United States if they meet the residency requirements. If you are a U.S. permanent resident or employment-based visa holder going through a divorce in Alabama, contact a Birmingham divorce lawyer.

Alabama Residents Can Divorce in Alabama, Even If They Are Not U.S. Citizens

Couples have the right to file for divorce in the family courts of Alabama if the petitioner has lived in Alabama for at least six months. The court will legally dissolve your marriage at the end of your divorce case even if your spouse has never resided in Alabama, if your spouse lives in another state or another country.  U.S. citizenship is not a requirement for filing for divorce in Alabama; one or both spouses can be U.S. permanent residents, or they can hold immigrant or nonimmigrant visas. In other words, your immigration status can be tied to your employment, your enrollment in a U.S. university, or even in a U.S. business.

If Your Immigration Status Is Tied to Your Spouse

In 2020, the courts of Alabama finalized the divorce of a couple where both spouses were citizens of India, but their Alabama-born children were U.S. citizens. The husband had an H-1B visa, and the wife had originally entered the U.S. as the spouse of an H-1B visa, but she later got an H-1B visa unconnected to her husband when her own employer issued her one. Therefore, the divorce had no effect on either party’s immigration status.

Spouses whose visas are tied to the other spouse’s visa risk losing their immigration status if they divorce. If you are a permanent resident and your employer sponsored your green card, then your divorce will have no effect on your residency status, even if you divorce shortly after getting a green card. If you applied for a green card based on your marriage to a U.S. citizen, then you can lose your green card if you have had it for less than two years, that is, if you have conditional permanent residency. If domestic violence was the cause of your divorce, you may be able to keep your green card, even if it is tied to your marriage and is temporary at the time of your divorce.

Contact Peeples Law About Not Letting Divorce Break Your Stride

A Birmingham family law attorney can help you finalize your divorce if one or both spouses have employment-based visas.  Contact Peeples Law in Birmingham, Alabama today to schedule a consultation.

Source:

scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=9846752441060583865&q=divorce+jewelry&hl=en&as_sdt=4,61,62,64&as_ylo=2015&as_yhi=2025